The nine members of the North Carolina Council of State are statewide-elected officers serving four-year terms.[3] In the 2012 elections, all incumbents who ran for new terms were re-elected, while the Lieutenant Governor's seat was open following incumbent Walter Dalton's decision to run for Governor. The partisan makeup of the Council of State changed from 7 Democrats (8 including the Governor) and 2 Republicans before the election to 6 Democrats and 3 Republicans (4 including the Governor) afterward.

As the runner-up, Causey requested a runoff.[47] Of all the statewide runoffs held on July 17, the Republican primary for Insurance Commissioner was the only one in which the top vote-getter changed from the first to the second primary.